El Regimen Sinaloense
A product of the movimiento alterado that has changed the face of the Mexican music scene in the last two years, El Regimen Sinaloense is churning out corridos enfermos, cumbias, rancheras and a wide range of regional Mexican music that always fills the dancefloor. Young Mexican audiences show their appreciation for groups, not with applause, but with their feet on the dancefloor.
Fronted by singer/songwriter Pedro Quezada Sandoval, the group is composed of Jesus Salazar (tuba), Manuel “Chapo” Bajo (bajo sexto—12 string Mexican guitar), 17-year-old Gilberto Elenes (acordeon—accordion), and Julian Anaya (bateria—drums). This instrumental configuration, which substitutes tuba for electric bass, is what has become known on the contemporary Mexican scene as a norteño banda, combining elements of a traditional norteño quartet with the much larger horn and drum driven banda.
El Regimen Sinaloense (The Sinaloa Regime) was formed in 2009 by these natives of the state of Sinaloa, Mexico under the guidance of manager and producer Juan Sandoval. They have released two CDs, Borracho de Amor and Yo Quiero Contigo, containing street level hits Borracho de Amor (Love Drunk) and Piensalo Bien (Think About It Well), the former written for the group by noted Mexican songwriter Noe “El Gato” Hernandez and the latter written by the group’s Pedro Quezada Sandoval.
El Regimen Sinaloense is currently finishing a CD of all originals set for October release.
The first single from that album, a new recording of "Piensalo Bien" backed by a full banda sinaloense, is now available for licensing and is for sale on iTunes and other download sites.
Movimiento Alterado
Banned from the radio in Mexico, and with limited radio exposure in the United States, the corridos enfermos of the movimiento alterado are nonetheless the latest craze in regional Mexican music. Really part of a hundred year old tradition of ballads about crimes, outlaws and government injustice, these corridos are folk songs and pop music at the same time.
Working class Mexicans in the United States and Mexico know these narcocorridos (fictional and true tales of the Mexican drug gangs), even without major radio play from word of mouth, club play and a new boom in internet exposure through outlets such as YouTube and estilochidoradio.com (cool style radio). Whether you approve or not, this music details the reality of contemporary Mexico and is what a large segment of the population turns to for both entertainment and news.
Go to construction sites, the kitchen of any restaurant, humble or fancy, on the West Coast and in many other parts of the United States, and this is the style of music you will undoubtedly hear. There is a real street level excitement about this style of music.
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